“Once the Treasury became overoptimistic about tax receipts, the money burnt a hole in the pockets of the politicians who blew it on spending binges. But why would an allegedly competent Treasury make such major mistakes in the first place? Here I am afraid is the key to the story – the politicisation of a once great institution. One can argue that the practice started with Mrs Thatcher, but she at least had the excuse that she was trying to introduce a more up-to-date way of thinking. There is no equivalent excuse for Gordon Brown’s appointment of his former political hack Ed Balls as Chief Economic Adviser or for promoting his former private secretary Nicholas MacPherson over the heads of more experienced officials to be permanent secretary. These moves made it clear that Brown wanted to stifle debate.”